Robin Edgar has not posted anything in over a month. That alone is not a surprise, as this has happened before. No, what’s significant is that an issue of concern has been gaining attention among Unitarian Universalists, yet he remains completely silent about it.

This is very strange to us, for at the very least, we would expect Mister Edgar to harp on any issue of actual “injustices, abuses and hypocrisy” among UUs, and exploit it for all its worth, desperately trying to link it to his supposed persecution. (This is, in fact, why we are not providing any details; no need to give him opportunities to attempt to hijack more blogs and other online discussions.)

Lately, Mister Edgar has remained fixated on attempts by the UUA to have him cease and desist from further online harassment of a number of its ministers – yet another sign of his unhealthy tendency towards rage-filled obsession. He keeps demanding that the UUA “govern [them]selves accordingly”, while he continues his periodic attacks against anybody and everybody who does not adhere to his continual self-centered demands for attention and validation.

Mister Edgar, if you were truly concerned for justice within Unitarian Universalism, you would have put aside your own demands, and used your talents and energy to help others with no thought of reward or recognition for yourself. But, have you ever done so? Every opportunity to raise awareness regarding some concern or issue, you have to twist it like a pretzel to be about you, even commenting on totally irrelevant blog posts to rant and rave about “Big Fat U*Us”, either generally or by name. And now, in this case, you’re not even bothering to do that. You’ve thus made it clear that your so-called “crusade” is all about you, and nobody else.

Truly sad.

An update: Mister Edgar replied with a comment that he was tweeting about the incident in question. What we found was his reply to a satirical UU tweet on the matter … buried under dozens of tweets he has done. Apparently Twitter is better suited to his more manic tendencies.

On Tuesday the 12th, two posts riddled with ‘Big Fat U*U’ in them. Nineteen, to be exact.

But, curiously, on Wednesday the 13th, three posts with no recurrence of that – but plenty of lashing out and vague attacks.

You would think that someone with a difference of opinion over how an organization is run would respond to the retirement of its chief administrator with an optimistic note on the possibility of positive change. No, Robin Edgar has to take more pot shots at Kay Montgomery.

And you would think that, if you talk repeatedly about ‘pedophiles and rapists’ in an organization, you would actually name some, as Robin Edgar had promised to do in his ‘New Year’s resolutions.’ Again, no such luck. Robin Edgar prefers instead to be provocative and sensationalistic – or, should we say, ‘deliberately rude and offensive’?

Robin Edgar keeps demanding that the UUA listen to him. Tell me, Mister Edgar, when you repeatedly describe them with terms like ‘douchebaggery,’ among other insults and perseverations, how do you expect them to take you seriously?

If this latest spate of manic attacks demonstrates anything, it is that Robin Edgar has no interest whatsoever in reconciliation or justice – only in lashing out and drawing attention to himself.

Once again, Robin Edgar has made another list of resolutions on his ‘Emerson Avenger’ blog, all related to his obsessive need to try to bring down Unitarian Universalism for failing to stroke his ego.

The first two are to be expected; he claims that he will ‘hold accountable’ the UUA and their Canadian law firm for their civil actions against his continual harassment and defamation. How? Golly, could we see yet more picketing and rage-filled screeds? After all, the only time he took legal action, with the Quebec Human Rights Tribunal, his complaint was dismissed for lack of merit. Still, we shouldn’t be surprised if he attempts some sort of counter-suit.

But the most outrageous on his list of resolutions is as follows:

Blog about at least two other well documented cases of Unitarian Universalist clergy or U*U Religious Educators who have actually been charged with, and convicted of, engaging in the despicable crime known as pedophilia.

We have seen this before, with his relentlessly repeating rants about former UU minister Mack Mitchell. The man was turned in by members of his own congregation, suspended from ministry during legal proceedings, and formally stripped of his ministerial credentials once convicted. But no, this isn’t good enough for Robin Edgar. Apparently he wants ‘U*U justice’ to be impossibly swift and sure. Would it help, Mister Edgar, if the Ministerial Fellowship Committee traveled back in time to undo everything? Considering his obsessive desire to hold grudges, we wouldn’t be surprised if even that was not good enough for him!

For all we know, the cases he’s talking about could involve people reported to the UUA by active UUs, and acted upon promptly and properly by both UU officials and law enforcement. It could also be that these are cases from long before the UUA had learned its lesson and implemented better policies for dealing with issues of professional misconduct, and for which the UUA has apologised and made restitution.

But, as we have seen before, nothing the UUA or any UU minister or leader could ever do will ever satisfy him. His self-defeating efforts are but sad attempts to bring down an organization and a movement devoted to compassion and forgiveness – something which, from what we can tell of his statements and behaviour, he seems very sorely lacking. It is a shame that a man with such energy must waste so much of it lashing out at a religious community instead of moving on and trying to build something better. Remember, also, this is a man who has refused to promise to remain non-violent in his so-called quest for ‘justice’. All we can do, sad to say, is remain vigilant and hopeful that he will not escalate into something much worse.

So far, Robin Edgar has done scant little aside from attack, insult, harass and slander. He’s not just annoyingly repetitive and unimaginative, he’s so overwhelmingly negative that he constantly begs the question … Just what does this man want?!?

(And we’re not sure even he knows the answer to that question.)

Now we do not agree with every Unitarian Universalist blogger out there, or with everything that the UUA does or stands up for, but we can certainly applaud when somebody takes the time to go beyond mere criticism and propose a constructive alternative.

One such blogger, having noted some serious shortcomings in the way the UUA handles complaints from individuals, proposed establishing an ombudspersonto field such complaints. At the very least, this blogger suggests, this UU ombudsperson could at least direct people with complaints to the right office or individual.

Tell us, Robin Edgar, would you approve of this idea? Since you can’t come up with an idea like this on your own, the least you can do is support this proposal.

Then again, Mister Edgar has expressed so much disdain for this particular blogger, it’s unlikely he’ll have anything positive to say about it.

Come to think of it, we can’t recall when Robin Edgar has had anything positive or constructive to say at all.

So, what do you say, Robin? Could you at least try to move beyond carping and lashing out, and give a concrete constructive proposal?

Don’t ever play cards with Robin Edgar. Because, if he plays the same way he responds to Unitarian Universalists, then he’s bound to rig the deck in his favour. Always.

If you’re a UU minister, and you post something on your blog which he does not like, then he attacks you. He’ll even file a ‘formal complaint of clergy misconduct’ (albeit to the wrong people) against you, and demand a response.

If he does not get a response to his misplaced ‘formal complaint’, then he will continually hound and harass the President of the UUA for one (even though the President’s office is not where such complaints are supposed to be delivered)

Well, let us say that you now remove the offending post, for whatever reason. Still not good enough. Now you are guilty of ‘memory-holing,’ because in Robin Edgar’s bizarre view of reality, you can never ever make amends for any mistake, and you must be forced to live with your mistakes forever and ever and ever.

After Robin Edgar’s latest ‘Emerson Avenger’ post, repeating once again his overblown ‘charges’ against Reverend Cynthia Cain, we can just picture him like Glenn Close’s famous character:

‘I’m not going to be IGNO-O-O-ORED, UUs!!!’

And just like Michael Douglas, we’re left trying to explain to him: ‘You just don’t get it, do you?’

Sadly, no. Robin Edgar does not ‘get’ how his outlandish behaviour constitutes harassment, or how it differs from the conduct of the UU ministers he obsessively fixates upon.

Cynthia Cain posted a comment on her own blog about the mean-spirited words and actions of certain US Republican leaders. She pretty much left it at that.

Robin Edgar, on the other hand, notoriously doesn’t ‘leave it at that’ when he targets you. No, a single blog post is not enough – he must blog about you constantly. And comment about you on other blogs and Internet forums constantly. And barrage you with emails constantly. And, just for good measure, make a picket sign referring to you, and use it in his ‘peaceful public protests’ constantly.

Do you now see why we are concerned about how far he might be willing to go? Anybody this obsessed, and who feels ignored, to the point of ruining his own life on a hopeless crusade to ruin others, will not stop merely at verbal abuse and harassment.

Most people would have let go and moved on long ago. But not when they are as obsessive, self-centered, rage-filled and ‘entitled’ as Robin Edgar. He’s not going to be ignored.

Perhaps, then, we are doing a service. By not ignoring him, by warning UUs and others about the potential danger of his warped mindset and behaviour, we are diverting him away from a potential escalation to violence.

We can only hope, just as we hope that he will finally get the help he needs.

We had received this comment a couple of months ago, but hesitated to post it until we made some effort to check it out as best as we can. Even so, we would not be surprised if Robin Edgar goes off on another one of his tirades, accusing us of ‘more moronic Big Fat U*U BS.’

Well, he can make all the accusations he wants. Read the comment for yourselves, and decide:

Came across your website and read thru it. I know Robin Edgar from years before, none of this surprises me or others I know who know about him. I’m not Unitarian, or any religion for that matter, but I lived with him in a boarding house here in Montreal. He can come across as nice enough, but as you say he is indeed obsessive. Cameras, for example. He can’t just tell you he took a picture, he has to describe in detail exactly what camera he is using, even his technical opinion, showing off what a great photographer he thinks he is.

I was around when he had his revelation, and like everything else he gets fixed on, he could not stop talking about it. Was convinced he could start his own religious movement around total eclipses, that the Unitarians would be a good place to start. Then things started falling apart, and the rest you know.

You also got right how he handles criticism or disagreement. If you ever cross him, he goes halfcocked about you being crazy or stupid or immoral. It’s hot and cold with him, you are either totally with him or you must be totally against him. He keeps losing friends, either driving them away or going all ballistic on him, then he’ll deny saying what he said or how he yells at people, then when he’s cornered and shown yes he said X Y Z or lost his cool, he goes on justifying it because nothing is ever his fault. Also takes a lot of things the wrong way, sometimes twists it around in really bizarre ways.

Robin has driven away more friends than anyone I know, and he is downright oblivious to his own problems. People have suggested he see someone, get counseling or learn how to deal better with people. Like you said, that is the worst, he will explode like an atom bomb, how dare anyone say he has any kind of problem. Just like before, running hot and cold, he can only think crazy or sane, and if you are crazy he sees it as a moral failing.

The way Robin behaves gets him in so much trouble, he has a very hard time holding down a job or living in any one place long enough. The few people he can still manage to relate with try not to bring up the Unitarian thing, or just humour him. The alternative of going thru the same old routine – blow up, attack people, deny he did it, be shown he did, then hear him justify everything he just denied – is not worth it for some, but most can only handle that for so long. The only thing unusual is how long he has obsessed with the Unitarians, I think because he figures they are the most convenient target so he can keep denying and avoiding his own problems.

Robin Edgar, we know you read this blog. Rest assured, we did take considerable steps to have some background checked before deciding to post this. You can continue to deny and lash out at us, but this is not a ‘Big Fat U*U’ problem. This is your problem, and it is more obvious to those around you than you realize. We have said it before, we will say it again, as apparently so many have said to you before: You need professional help. Stop avoiding, denying, blaming and attacking.

One of the biggest problems with trying to read Robin Edgar’s blog posts and comments is his use (or abuse) of language. His writings are riddled with all sorts of repetitive catch phrases coined or appropriated by him, and he often redefines words through the lens of his narcissistic obsessions. This is a guide to many of these, and we invite our readers to offer more examples of ‘Robin-Edgar-speak’

Abuse – any criticism of Robin Edgar by any Unitarian Universalist, however valid or constructive.

Asterisk – a frequently overused typographical symbol in Robin Edgar’s blog posts and online comments; even though he has shown himself quite capable of using boldface, italics and underlining, he continues to frame words with asterisks as a means of emphasis; considering his repeated commentary that the asterisk resembles a rectal sphincter, this may explain his obsessive overuse (see entry forAss, Asshole); this in turn may provide meaning to his constantly abbreviating ‘Unitarian Universalist’ as ‘U*U’ (read ‘you asshole, you’); note also his spelling out the word as ‘Ass-To-Risk’

Big Fat U*U – Meaningless attempt at an insult by Robin Edgar towards any and every Unitarian Universalist of whom he disapproves; considering that he has never voiced approval of any Unitarian Universalists, and the incredible amount of repetition in his blog and online comments, an especially meaningless phrase

Censorship – refusing to publish any of Robin Edgar’s comments, regardless of how offensive or irrelevant it may be; even though no effort is made to suppress his use of his own blog (actually several) to publish his views, he considers others’ refusing to let him hijack their blogs and media outlets for his own purposes to be an affront to his rights

Cowardly – anybody who chooses to question or criticize Robin Edgar anonymously, for whatever reason; all too often assumed by him to be a Unitarian Universalist

DIM thinking – a term of art appropriated by Robin Edgar to describe any disagreement with, or questioning of, any of his actions or allegations; if you do not agree with his belief that Unitarian Universalism is riddled with ‘injustices, abuses and hypocrisy’, and that he is justified in doing and saying whatever he wants in response (even when he makes unjust accusations, abusive statements, or behaves exactly as he accuses others of doing), then you are guilty of ‘DIM thinking’

Emerson Avenger – according to Robin Edgar, his ‘online persona’ for engaging in an endless crusade against ‘injustices, abuses and hypocrisy’ within Unitarian Universalism; another way of rationalizing his outlandish statements and behaviour by claiming that he is actually a nice and reasonable person, and that his ‘Emerson Avenger persona’ is merely a ‘form of satire’ in response to Unitarian Universalists refusing to give in to his repeated demands for ‘justice’; the problem is, Unitarian Universalists have so rarely seen him behaving ‘nice’ and ‘reasonable’, making it hard to tell which is the real Robin Edgar and which is an act

Googe hits – justification for Robin Edgar’s belief in his own relevance, importance and self-righteousness

Hypocrisy – label attached to any Unitarian Universalist who does not always listen to, or agree completely with, Robin Edgar

Insults – in the mind of Robin Edgar, a perfectly justifiable response to any criticism of his obnoxious, outrageous and offensive behaviour; since he views any such criticism as an insult (see alsoAbuse), he believes that he is in his rights to lash out at any Unitarian Universalist who disagrees with him, or even refuses to respond to his demands

Justice – Unitarian Universalists giving in to every complaint, demand and grievance of Robin Edgar, no matter how extreme or irrational

Kick in the balls – example of Robin Edgar’s frequent and repetitive use of violent imagery, in this case to exaggerate the importance or relevance of one Unitarian Universalist disagreeing with another, and often coupled with the bizarre claim that such disagreement justifies Robin Edgar’s outrageous behaviour and verbal attacks

Memory hole – final resting place for many of Robin Edgar’s more offensive comments on other people’s blogs (although he is notorious for printing them on his own blog, then accusing the other person of ‘censorship’); appropriated out of context from George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four

Peaceful public protest – real-time harassment of Unitarian Universalist groups and meetings, involving the use of handmade picket signs with bizarre statements; many times ‘documented’ by having Robin Edgar photograph or videotape himself; most frequent target of this tactic has been the Unitarian Church of Montreal, which terminated his membership after enduring almost two years of obsessive and outrageous conduct; also directed at perceived co-conspirators of ‘U*U injustices, abuses and hypocrisy’, such as Quebec’s Crown Prosecutors for following up on requests filed for restraining orders against him

Some – Apparently a reference to 99.9999 percent of Unitarian Universalists, or particular groups of Unitarian Universalists; Robin Edgar frequently prefaces his attacks on UUs with this word, as if to make the claim that he does not despise all UUs; the problem, of course, is that he has lashed out at so many UUs since the start of his crusade against alleged ‘injustices, abuses and hypocrisy’ that it is virtually impossible to know if he actually approves of any

I found your site after hearing about “The Emerson Avenger” from some guys at a cafe. We were all using laptops and pads through the cafe’s free WiFi, and they were all laughing at something. One of them, a friend of mine from school, showed me the website. When they first stumbled on it, they were confused how some of his posts could be even remotely related to his campaign against “injustices, abuses and hypocrisy.” They asked him why, and his response was unbelievable – insulting, presumptuous, and then a second post boasting about getting the last word. So another guy posted a response, and the blogger went on another rant. He is definitely obsessed and unhinged, thinking anyone who questions or criticizes him MUST be a “U*U” and an idiot. I feel so sorry for this guy, he’s wasted so much of his time and life on this, and what has he got to show for it. He’s a laughinstock, that’s all he’s succeeded in doing. None of the guys in the cafe are Unitarians (neither am I) or even interested in religion, but they just find his blog so ridiculous and wacked out. I can see why you’ve written this blog in response, because he needs to learn – if he ever can – that he’s not accomplishing a damned thing, he’s just proving the people who call him a nut that they’re right. It’s so pitiful, really.

Aside from becoming more maniacal in his postings, Robin Edgar has begun to focus (or fixate) on yet another issue: Unitarian Universalists and sex.

Freud would have a field day with this man.

Robin Edgar has become more explicit, almost to the point of vulgarity, in trying to use sex as yet another means of discrediting UUs. Of course, he picks what will fit his biased obsession of ‘UUs bad’, even to the point of highlighting outdated and uncorroborated material.

Basically, he is utilising the same methods he had before, only on a more sensitive topic. Not to mention failing, once again, to propose any positive solutions (compared to many UU bloggers who have made specific suggestions for dealing with the problems of the past).

Still, it should surprise nobody that Robin Edgar is now doing this. He has made tasteless sexual allusions before, not to mention his obsessive puns around anuses, and his repetitive use of ‘kick in the balls’. What’s unusual is his shifting from juvenile toilet humour to puritanical judgments about sex.

Then again, it is hard to predict what this disturbed man will do next…